We honor the life and memories of McKay, whose light will forever shine in our hearts. He truly lived every day to the fullest!
Chris & Christy hosted Nate and Shae Hansen on the Lighthouse Podcast today. Nate and Shae have six kids between the ages of 5 to 17 years old. That's right - they are a family of eight and they live in Salt Lake City, Utah. Their son, McKay, was first diagnosed in February 2014 with stage four high-risk neuroblastoma. While his body was full of cancer cells, he hit remission and had clean scans until February 2021. It had been 7 years since his first diagnosis to the weekend when he relapsed. Right now, they are almost two years into treatment for his second battle with cancer.
Nate and Shae walk us through the perspective shift they have experienced between the two cancer battles. With this round of McKay's battle, the family dynamics were much different than in the first round. Nate talks about how he encouraged the family to "fight with faith." She shares what she learned from the first battle and what she brought into the second battle. Additionally, they have learned not to take for granted seasons of good health.
The Hansen family chooses to live life to the fullest each day instead of living toward the finish line of treatment. Nate and Shae have worked hard to be intentional with the family by making time with them a priority (even if it's time in the car). In closing, they shared how even though it was challenging to be served and taken care of, they are so blessed by it. Last but not least, they encourage other families walking through a cancer journey to accept help when it's offered no matter how hard it is to accept.
In the opener, Chris and Christy announced that our Advent Calendar is coming out soon! If you are a family living through childhood cancer, we would love to gift you a copy. Simply fill out this request form with all your information and we will mail you an advent calendar in November.
